Month: August 2017

American rock singer-songwriter Alice Cooper has recently (re)discovered a custom art piece from one of his old friends, pop art icon Andy Warhol. The rock star discovered the piece in a storage locker, in his words, ‘rolled up in a tube’, where it sat, forgotten and unknown for more than 4 decades.

The piece in question is a 1964 red silkscreen iteration of Warhol’s the ‘Little Electric Chair’, which is part of his Death and Disaster series. The piece had never seen the confinement of a frame, and was left, rolled up alongside touring paraphernalia that Cooper used back in the early 70s as part of his stage routine, which, incidentally, included an actual electric chair.

According to Alice Cooper’s longtime manager, Shep Gordon, Cooper and Warhol became friends when they met back at Max’s Kansas City in the Big Apple, back in 1972. Gordon said that Andy met Cooper because both were ‘groupies’ they loved the environment of famous people, and the two became close.

Warhol went to one of Cooper’s concerts, wherein part of the performance was Cooper pretending to be executed via electric chair. The image from the silkscreen print, is based on a press release photo of the Sing Sing Prison’s death chamber released early 1953, where Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were executed for selling American atomic secrets to the Ruskies.

After the artwork was made, Cindy Lang, Cooper’s girlfriend, bought the picture from Warhol, which she purchased with money from Gordon. The piece then made its way into Cooper’s touring equipment, where it was promptly forgotten about, only to be remembered recently when Ruth Bloom, an LA art dealer, spoke of how much a Warhol piece fetched for in an auction.

The Little Electric Chair piece remains unauthenticated, for it does not have any identification or signature from Andy Warhol himself, and, as such, will not fetch as much as it should at an auction. The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts stopped their authentication services in 2011 following a long legal battle with British collector Joe Simon regarding his self-portrait.

The canvas however, was backed by Richard Polsky, an expert on Warhol pieces, saying that the silkscreen checks out, and that it is a genuine Warhol piece.

Alice Cooper has stated his intention to keep the piece and hang it in his home, to be admired once he comes off tour at the year’s end.

According to Gordon, Cooper’s face was a sight to see when he passed along the estimate from Polsky. Cooper was said to have reacted effusively, asking Gordon if he was serious, seeing as he never expected something like a custom art piece of an electric chair to have such value.

There are many signs of recovery that s evident in the real estate market of Yangon as well as its construction industry. Notwithstanding the remaining challenges that they are facing, FMR which is a research company revealed in its semi-annual review that the real estate sector is on its way to recovering. There are already a handful of hotel projects and Yangon serviced apartment that are lined up to be constructed in the following years.

According to a publication released by FMR called Yangon Real Estate Review, there will still be a number of project cancellations as well as delays that are anticipated in the coming months because of the reassessments that are being conducted by developers with regards to the viability of their project.

In a statement they have published last month, the company said that there are signs of economic recovery in the long-term aspect of the market and its potential is starting to show since the stagnation felt in 2016 is coming to an end. In order for the market to have success in a long-term basis, it is important that the government policies should be consistent.

The review also states that there has been slow growth seen in the sales of off-plan residential projects in majority of the developments as well as new projects emerging are not that many.

FMR clarified that despite this, there a handful of developments that are changing the current trend and more and more proofs are showing that new projects will soon to be launched in the country.

There is still the lingering effect of the work suspension that was imposed on the projects located in Q2 and Q3 of Yangon while there are still developments that are still unmoved after the decision.

Commercial projects are coming to life after the development of the Junction City in the downtown area of Yangon. Aside from the retail mall, the project will have more office space allocated which will cover about an additional of 33,000 square meters.

Many of the developers such as those offering Yangon serviced apartment are looking into international companies to help them operate their project and stay ahead of their competitions.

A hotel website usually includes a wide array of information but very often, a potential visitor will not make the effort to read and find out the features offered. For most travellers, what is more crucial the location because they do not want to waste time in travelling from the hotel to the destination. If you are visiting Bangkok, a good option would be a hotel in the heart of the city.

According to Daniel Holl, Head of Global Hotel Sales of Trivago, in the hospitality industry, it is important to be agile in determining the ever-changing preferences of consumers. What most consumers like is to have a diverse choice with full market transparency and they want to see all options in one place. Trivago does not use intuition and prefers to act based on data so that they will have an immediate and strong impact.

In terms of advertising, Trivagospends more than any other online brand on TV promotions, more than what Trip Advisor spends because they want to explain to consumers why metasearch is very important. Trivago provides hoteliers the ability to compete for bookings. For consumers, Trivago allows them to choose from more hotels at better prices.

A traveller’s booking journey starts with search but Trivago does not want travellers to make the mistake of “booking on trivago.” This should not be integrated into the search experience of the traveller because it will only create confusion among users. The goal of Trivago is to improve booking conversions for their advertisers so that they can be competitive in the open hotel marketplace.

Small and medium sized hotel are at a disadvantage when compared to the bigger hotel chains because they do not have the resources and data to build a booking platform that is optimized for all devices. Trivago levels the playing field by helping advertisers to turn more “lookers into bookers.”

Special and discounts are available if you book directly with retro hotel in Sukhumvit which is situated in a very convenient location in the city of Bangkok. The 4-star boutique hotel offers a stunning blend of contemporary and retro style that is fused with charming elegance.

A few searches on the internet and you will easily find a whole lot of Phuket 5 star resorts for you to book into. You can find pool villas, high end hotels, apartments, standard hotels with affordable rooms and other variations. To find a resort accommodation that suits your budget, visit at least five websites to compare rates and the amenities that you can find with every accommodation. Here are some ideas that will guide you on how you can find a great yet affordable resort.

Check the internet

One of the surest ways to find a great resort is thru the internet. You can visit the resort websites directly or you can check from third party sites for easy comparison of rates and hotel features. You can also visit the websites of reputable hotel review sites to find out which resort is highly recommended or rated by tourists. The good thing about visiting official hotel websites is that you can find promos and deals that may not be found in third party booking sites.

Check the tourism agency

One way to find world class Phuket 5 star resorts is by visiting the official website of Thailand’s tourism agency. In their website, you can find recommended and even multi-awarded hotels and beach resorts around Thailand. Such information can also be found at their local government’s local review board for hotels and beach resorts. If you have Thai friends, they can also be a good source of information for excellent hotels.

Ask for referrals from friends

If you have friends who recently visited Thailand or in Bangkok, you can ask information from them for hotels or resorts that they can recommend. Find out if the Phuket 5 star resorts that they stayed in offers reasonably priced accommodation and if the rates suit your budget. To narrow your options, indicate your budget when searching for beach resorts. You may also want to include the specific area where you want to stay such as in Phuket, KohSamui or downtown of Bangkok.

Many investors are coming to Thailand to fund various projects such as a high-rise hotel in Bangkok and for the first six months of this year alone, the hotel market of the country was able to receive a total direct investment worth 10.7 billion baht. This figure was reported by the JLL Hotels & Hospitality Group which is based in Thailand.

The figure came from four main ventures that included five hotels located in both Pattaya and Bangkok.

Mike Batchelor who is the head of investment Sales Asia for JLL Hotels said that in 2016 they were able to record the full year investment of only 9.6 billion baht. The strong interests of the investors in the first half of this year only shows that the hospitality market of Thailand is going strong and remains to have a positive future which is good news for the tourism industry of the country.

Investors are coming from regional and domestic sectors. The most recent acquisitions were made by companies in Singapore, Carlton Hotel Group and Hotel 81. The ventures from these companies only made it clear that Thailand is still the number one when it comes to countries worth investing in the region.

Carlton Hotel Group based in Singapore was able to acquire an unfinished project located in Bangkok. Its exact address is Sukhumvit Road Soi 27 and the entire property has a total land area of over 3,200 square meters. The hotel has currently 34 floors and is still under construction.

Bangkok Management Company Limited is the seller and they were the ones that commissioned JLL Hotels in mediating the deal. The transaction was worth 2.4 billion baht. The project is expected to be done by 2019 and it will carry the brand of Carlton Hotel in the capital city.

Hotel 81, on the other hand, was able acquire Premier Inn and two other hotels that are located in Bangkok and Pattaya. The company has put Travleodge into the position of power in terms of managing the hotels they have bought in the country.

According to JLL, when 2017 ends they are expecting a total investment of 14 billion and new projects such as a high rise hotel in Bangkok might be available to locals and tourists in the coming years.

Family members and few Hollywood stars say their final farewell to Australian actor Heath Ledger during his private memorial service.

Award winning actor Cate Blanchett gave a commendation, before the actor’s body was cremated at a private funeral service attended by few of his family members. His ashes were placedinside urns in Perth for safekeeping.

Co-star and ex-fiancée Michelle Williams of 2005 hit Brokeback Mountain was with her older sister Kate during the service. However, the couple’s daughter Matilda remained at home. Also there for mourning the actor’s death was Australian actors Joel Edgerton and Bryan Brown, model Gemma Ward, along with sports stars and film directors.

Ledger died seemingly due to prescription drugs overdose, which shocked fans from all around the world. According to a New York medical specialist, the actor took six kinds of sedatives and painkillers.

The 28-year-old actor was supposedly a rising star in Hollywood after he won an Oscar nomination for portraying a gay cowboy in Brokeback Mountain. He also portrayed the joker in the new Batman film with Michael Caine and Christian Bale released in Britain.

The actor’s father Kim Ledger pleaded to media to leave his family in peace, but allowed them to cover the service outside a girls’ school where the interment happened. His ashes are now kept in urns in Perth, which can preserve his memories.

Afterwards, the grievers joined another wake at a restaurant on Cottesloe Beach, a beach resort where the dead actor almost frequented.Here, it featured the footages of the actor and his recordings of favourite songs, such as the Beatle’s Here Comes the Sun, Pink Floyd’s Wish You Were Here, and Bob Dylan’s The Times They Are Changing.

According to state lawmaker Barbara Stott who attended the service, the presentation was such a wonderful tribute to a fantastic guy who had such great talents.

Another memorial in Los Angeles appealed a lot of stars to include Josh Hartnett, Lindsay Lohan and Tom Cruise. According to the actor’s dad, his son was a typical guy who sought no fame for himself but for others.

He pictures Heath bringing his skateboard, a beanie and canvas bag, which was what Heath was to him since, he said days after his death. They will keep visiting his urns in Perth for memories.

There are several reasons why home owners and office managers call for glass shops for glass wall installations and furnishings. As a matter of fact, you cannot find a house or an office setting without any glass material in it. Whether it is door panels, table top glass, splash backs, mirrors or walls, there is always a glass material in this modern world. If you are having second thoughts about using glass materials, take a look at these reasons why you should go for it.

Easy cleaning

Glass materials are some of the easiest materials to clean and maintain. You do not need special solutions just to keep your glass clear and even sparkling. All you need is a clean washcloth, a pale of soapy water with mild detergent and you can easily clean the glass surfaces without the hassles. You can also find specifically formulated solutions in the market for glass surfaces but if you do not want to spend on it, go for washcloth and soapy water. That will effectively remove dust on the glass. However, for heavy dirt, you might want to use stronger solutions for it.

Contemporary appeal

Another reason to choose glass material is for your premises to achieve that modern look. Take a look at successful companies and you will find their offices and cubicles partitioned with glass panels and glass doors. Consult an installer from any of your preferred glass shops for ideas on how you can go about installing glass panels or windows in your home and how you can save money on the project. You can also check some websites for modern home designs for ideas. Another option is to observe hotels and modern offices for design inspiration.

Fast replacement and maintenance

Another good reason to choose glass is that they can easily be replaced and maintained by glass shops and the glass material can even be cut while you wait. There are also ready-made glass panels for easy installation and replacement. This is ideal for emergency situations wherein you need to replace glass walls right away.